Movie Geeks Club is located in Springfield, Illinois. We meet on the last Thursday of every month to screen classic, independent, and foreign films you're not likely to see in other theaters.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

The End of Movie Geeks Club

Unfortunately, I have to announce the end of Movie Geeks Club.

Here is what happened:

For the previous 4 1/2 years, we have partnered with Capital City Bar & Gill to bring you a movie once a month while at the same time bring in a couple hundred dollars in business for them on a night that otherwise would not have that extra business. It worked well. There were some months that I wished we had brought more people in but as long as they weren't losing money, it worked. I always viewed them as a restaurant who opened up their extra dining room for us. It probably stretched the waitresses a bit thin at times but I never worried as long as people were eating food, buying drinks and leaving tips.

Last month, the Capital City Bar and Grill had a change of ownership/management. We had heard about a change coming at the May MGC. Last week, at the June movie, it was clear that there had been a communication break down during the transition because the new manager didn't know about us. After we explained what we are and that we had been bringing in customers one night a month to watch a movie for the past 4 1/2 years, I thought we would be able to continue the partnership.

I was informed today by the new manager that he would begin charging us between $125 and $150 a night, depending on the length of the movie. As you know, we have never charged admission because we wanted this to be a free and unique experience for Springfield. We could also never charge because of licensing laws (of which we were always in the gray area on that anyway). And while I loved the Movie Geeks Club, I can't justify paying out of my own pocket while marketing business for Capital City Bar and Grill to continue this.

This is not a "call to action" but feel free to contact them if you are disappointed. In the end, it is his business decision and there isn't anything we can do.

Thank you to all who have attended throughout the years. We have shown some great films and I have met many wonderful people. I was really looking forward to our next movie because it would have been our 50th film.

Finally, even though I am announcing the end, if there is another venue out there that we can use in the future, we may continue. Unfortunately, this was a unique situation where a bar can make money and we could offer Springfield a unique opportunity to enjoy a free night (minus the food and drink) out watching a great film.

Heather, thanks. I should have also mentioned thanking John Anderson and Bart Rodgers for their time and efforts. Bart took over last year for John who moved to Virginia. Bart has provided the movies from his Netflix since he joined me.

October Film

About Movie Geeks

Each month (the last Thursday) we meet at Charley's Club (basement of Cafe Andiamo) 204 S. 6th Street., Springfield, IL. Movies start at 7:00. There is no cover charge or admission fee of any kind.

About Our Voting Process

After every screening, we vote on the movie for the following month. To make it easy on everyone, we have a variety of ways to vote. If you are in attendance, you can vote after the movie. You can send us an e-mail. You can leave us a comment on the blog, or you can select your choice in the Vote Now box above. The nominations for the following month's movie will be made available a few days to a week before our monthly screening. A few days after the vote, we will announce what the upcoming movie will be.